FORUM (Spotlight Weekly)

SAARC: A Vision For Collective Self Reliance

By Late King Birendra Bir Bikram Shah

Situated in the Himalayas, Nepal as a sentinel of independence has for many centuries watched over the drama of our sub-continent that stretch from the snowy peaks to the rolling waves of the Indian ocean. Bounded between the high mountains, the seas and the ocean, this landmass from the picturesque atolls to the high mountains constitutes a total ecosystem that governs our life. Each summer the monsoon sets into motion a pattern of life that are all so common to us. Year after year from the planting of rice to the harvesting of wheat, our people through the ages have followed a cycle of events that marks the marks the change of seasons with the seas plays a cooperative role that can only be described as providentially meaningful.

For centuries Nepal has watched over the moving pageants of peoples and communities who came from different directions in different epochs to make this vast, sunlit region of South Asia their home since the beginning of history. This fact also makes us among the most ancient nations on earth. In the march of times in the region, we have heard exuberant cries of victory as well as the anguish of defeat. We have seen external aggressions and brutal scenes committed through greed and inspired by lust. We have also observed the defeat resulting into humiliation through internal dissensions. In the midst of it all, we have seen dynasties rise and fall, empires come and go, civilizations blossom and wither away. Yet the people of our region have contributed to the world the finest philosophic thoughts, a rich heritage of culture based on the quest of peace, freedom and brotherhood among men.

We all know that the people of South Asia constituting nearly one billion are crammed into a region with relatively limited land and resource base. With the legacies of internal divisions, exploitation and domination by powers beyond us, I think there are many challenges we face in common. The problems of basic needs remain real for the large segments of our people in this region. The world never has had in its recorded history such technological resources as it has today to cope with poverty and hunger on a global scale. But the gradual erosion of the collective spirit has aggravated our problems and frustrated our efforts which is why we have agreed over the years to strengthen cooperation among ourselves in international fora on matters of common interest. The weakening of the global economic interdependence and the disillusionment with the continuing deadlock in restructuring the international economic order have thrust upon us greater responsibilities for collective self-reliance and South-South cooperation on a much larger scale.

Indeed, it is our firm conviction that regional cooperation can strengthen the building of a lasting edifice of peaceful co-existence through initiatives and interactions in the fields like the cultural, scientific, technological and economic spheres. We realize that there exist among us many differences in size, situation, population, resources and the levels of development. In a way, this diversity has been our drawback in the past. But destiny has put us together in such close proximity that no matter how hard we try to delink ourselves from each other we cannot override the compulsions of geography nor can we ever ignore the lessons of history. It is, indeed, a fact of life that historically, powers have played on our divisions to an extent that even the principles of non-alignment which we have commonly adhered to could come to a danger threatening the very peace and stability of this region. The challenge therefore is whether we are able to turn our weakness into strength by resolving to reach into a principle of agreeable harmony, an order that says not for one but for all to the betterment of all our people of this region.

As the century draws to its close and as each country is thinking of a vision for the future, let this gathering be able to chart out a course of action based not only on high ideals alone but also on common sense and hard realism. Let us not forget that the very objectives we have ben seeking in so many forums have now become more urgently than ever, a common challenge to us. From the side of Nepal with the high Himalayas as one of our assets and a vast reservoir of yet untapped water resource that can give to the millions of our of people a means to fulfill their basic needs, I wish to draw the attention to the fact that there exists this priceless resource waiting to be harnessed for the benefit of our people.

May I add that for the first time in the history of our region, we are gathered here to set a seal on a Charter establishing an institutional framework for deliberations and decisions on what we can do among ourselves to promote the welfare of the peoples of this region by upholding at the same time, the ideals and purposes of the United Nations Charter, the five Principles of Peaceful Co-Existence together with those of the Non-Aligned Movement of which we all are sovereign members. While it is our common concern to preserve the independence and security of each country in the region, we have also a common commitment to promote the cause of peace and development for our people. The escalating arms race is draining world's precious resources. The world and, above all, our region urgently needs a new wisdom capable of striking a balance between the claims of security and those of basic needs.

The choice for us in the region is clear. After a long winter of mistrust, coldness and suspicion this region of South Asia looks forward to a new spring giving birth as it were to a new era of enlightened self-interest based on a common desire to replace conflict with cooperation, to substitute discord with harmony, and finally, move from an attitude of selfcenteredness to a widening horizon of contacts in the region in a spirit of reciprocity, give and take, live and let live. May God grant us all such a vision and statesmanship to meet this challenge of making the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation a vibrant reality with our people for their wellbeing, peace and joy.

(Excerpts from the address by late King Birendra at the first SAARC Summit held in Dhaka, in December 1985.)